Happy Valentine’s Day! If you are looking for someplace romantic to take your significant other, you may not have to go very far.
About six years ago, Governor Pataki’s wife sponsored a contest to name the most romantic places in New York State. Of course Niagara Falls was on that list, as well as the Catskills. But also on the list was a place on the RPI campus … the hill out behind Folsom Library. It was nominated at the time by a student because of its spectacular view of Troy and of sunsets.
This is also the same location where the new EMPAC building is slated to go. It seems that the planning committee could not come up with another location for a variety of reasons, including future growth of other buildings and the geology of certain areas. Considering the natural appeal of the location, this is unfortunate.
Before they go removing trees that are almost as old as the school and destroying this view, hopefully careful consideration will be given not only to the new building’s aesthetics, but also to how well it will fit in on that site. Additionally, we would suggest that before this site is formalized, the members of the committee take a walk from the dorms to the site at 9 pm on a cold night this February, and another during the day. This building will not just be getting used between 8 am and 5 pm.
So if you are on campus now, go enjoy this view while you can—in a couple of years, we may no longer have anything resembling a nice place to have a picnic or to watch the sun set.
